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Obesity rates in America, particularly among children, have seen a concerning rise since 1980, although there are small declines among low-income preschoolers. Experts emphasize that there is no single solution to combat obesity, advocating for comprehensive policies and community initiatives like West Virginia's Feed to Achieve Act and North Carolina's community gardens. States are exploring various strategies to promote healthier lifestyles and improve public health outcomes.

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12 views

issue-00352-hash-twos-complement

Obesity rates in America, particularly among children, have seen a concerning rise since 1980, although there are small declines among low-income preschoolers. Experts emphasize that there is no single solution to combat obesity, advocating for comprehensive policies and community initiatives like West Virginia's Feed to Achieve Act and North Carolina's community gardens. States are exploring various strategies to promote healthier lifestyles and improve public health outcomes.

Uploaded by

Sheri Thomas
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Published on CSG Knowledge Center (http://knowledgecenter.csg.

org/kc)

Home > There’s No One Right Answer for Fighting Obesity

|:
Jennifer Ginn [1]

There still are a lot of obese Americans, but there also are a lot of options for states trying to help
them get healthier.

Janet Collins, director of the Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity at the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, told attendees at Thursday’s “State Approaches to Obesity Reduction”
session that obesity rates for children have tripled since 1980. But for low-income preschool children,
the rate is finally dropping.

The declines “are small, but they were the first declines we had seen in a generation,” she said.

Dr. Scott Kahan, director of the STOP Obesity Alliance, said legislators looking to stem the tide of
obesity have a variety of options. He said a comprehensive policy for prevention and treatment
options, just like states offer for other chronic illnesses, are necessary to make a difference

“Obesity is a very complex chronic condition,” he said. “There is no silver bullet for managing or
reversing obesity and not on a policy level either. We need to keep putting together a number of
helpful support polices and treatments to help people improve their health.”

States are talking about a wide variety of options.

West Virginia Sen. John Unger introduced and passed the Feed to Achieve Act this year. The act aims
to provide a breakfast and lunch for every student in the state, encourages school districts to
maximize student participation in the federal free and reduced price school lunch program and
authorizes districts to enter into public-private partnerships to help pay for food for children.

North Carolina’s Nourishing North Carolina program has established community gardens that have
donated two tons of produce to food shelters. Kansas City has aggressively pursued a Complete
Streets program to make the city more bike and pedestrian friendly.

“All of this matters because if you build it, they truly will come,” said Deb Ridgway, Kansas City’s
bicycle and pedestrian coordinator. “We want to encourage families to continue to live an active
lifestyle. … (We’re) making sure what we do positively changes the lives of those in our
communities.”

By:
Saturday, September 21, 2013 at 11:51 AM
Tags:
2013 CSG National Conference [2]Capitol Comments [3]Capitol Ideas Today [4]
Policy Area [5]›Health [6]›Prevention and Public Health [7]›Obesity [8]
© 2016 The Council of State Governments. All Rights Reserved.

Source URL: http://knowledgecenter.csg.org/kc/content/there%E2%80%99s-no-one-right-answer-fighting-obesity-3

Links
[1] http://knowledgecenter.csg.org/kc/users/jennifer-ginn
[2] http://knowledgecenter.csg.org/kc/category/tags/2013-csg-national-conference
[3] http://knowledgecenter.csg.org/kc/category/tags/capitol-comments
[4] http://knowledgecenter.csg.org/kc/category/tags/capitol-ideas-today
[5] http://knowledgecenter.csg.org/kc/category/policy-area
[6] http://knowledgecenter.csg.org/kc/category/policy-area/health
[7] http://knowledgecenter.csg.org/kc/category/policy-area/health/prevention-and-public-health
[8] http://knowledgecenter.csg.org/kc/category/policy-area/health/prevention-and-public-health/obesity

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